The present disclosure generally relates to a vehicle air cleaner housing, and more particularly relates to an air cleaner housing having a housing member with a tongue pivotally attached thereto.
A current air cleaner housing, includes a first housing member secured within a vehicle and having at least one tongue aperture, and a second housing member having a main housing portion and at least one tongue that is removably received in the at least one tongue aperture to form a hinge element allowing the second housing member to pivot relative to the first housing member. Such pivoting may be desirable when replacing an air filter element disposed within the air cleaner housing without the necessity of fully removing the second housing member from the first housing member.
One problem with this arrangement is that each tongue is integrally formed with the second housing member and not movable relative thereto. For example, the tongue can be a solid projection extending from a wall of the second housing member. When inserting the tongue in its corresponding tongue aperture, the tongue can sometimes become wedged between the air cleaner element and the structure of the first housing member defining the tongue aperture. This can occur when the air filter element has a height that is higher or elevated relative to a sealing surface of the first housing member. As a result, the tongue can have a “sticking region” where it is difficult to insert into the tongue aperture. This can create a difficult situation for the customer during air cleaner maintenance (e.g., air cleaner element replacement). If the tongue is not fully inserted into the tongue aperture, it can be easily broken or damaged leading to customer dissatisfaction.